


Dust

by Incarcerated



Category: Naruto
Genre: Iwagakure | Hidden Stone Village, Male Protagonist, Self-Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:01:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26661094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Incarcerated/pseuds/Incarcerated
Summary: A village hated for it's past. A stranger thrust into the world of shinobi and the conflict that arises due to his morality taking precedence. Can a person who is against the way of shinobi live a life as one.
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

An injured fist brushed past my face prompting me to quickly retaliate with a fist of my own.

My opponent was one who was well versed in Taijutsu. My fist met his own as we threw out punches aiming to put an end to this match. 

We took a pause to regain our breath. Then began in full force. My opponents slightly bruised up fist had now changed to reflect a red hue.

As our fists met in a flurry to deliver the last blow blood spurted out from his fist coloring my hand with a blood red tinge. The smell of iron was overbearing.

“Kotta, you should have skipped today’s taijutsu practice,” I said as I walked towards him.

“How is it should I call someone”

At my very mention our class teacher Taizou-sensei came forth. 

“Kotta are you fine?” Taizou-sensei said as he looked at Kotta’s hand.

It looked damaged but there wasn’t any visible injury present except a slight cut.

“I’m fine Sensei though I should probably get some rest before joining taijutsu again” He then turned to me.

“It’s too bad that we can’t cross fists, isn’t it Naito”

“We can have another battle some other time, let’s just go and get your hand checked out” I said.

“I also need to wash off all this blood that you splattered on me” I said holding up my blood stained hand.

“Ok Naito I’ll leave Kotta to you” Taizou-sensei said as he left to check on the other students.

As soon as sensei left I began to notice a crowd starting to approach the two of us. Kotta also noticed the crowd and smirked.

‘This guy’

The crowd that was approaching contained students, male and female. Now why were they approaching me? Explaining that would be difficult. 

And right now I didn’t want to deal with it.  
…

“Guess we finally managed to escape from them” I said as I scouted the surroundings.

The Iwagakure ninja academy was built among the mountains. Therefore almost all the academy students would train here on any of these mountains during taijutsu to help build strength and durability.

The view also wasn’t half bad as I would come here often to watch the sunset. Though some of them were completely barren and devoid of any greenery.

“How is your hand?” I said as I looked at Kotta’s bandaged hand.

“It’s fine except for a slight amount of pain”

“You should really tone down the taijutsu practise in my opinion”

“I’ll think about it”

We stayed silent as we looked up to the sky. 

“So this is what you wanted to show me?” Kotta said, his eyes marveling at the allure of the setting sun.

“Yeah, you remember when you asked me what I enjoy. Well this is one of them. A sight that shows nature’s beauty. Something that the world of shinobi isn’t able to appreciate” I said joining him in gazing at the sky.

The glowing orange setting sun amalgamated with the surrounding blue overpowering its hue and embedded the surrounding sky in a tinge of orange. The sky was turning dark with gray clouds passing by.

Strong winds blew by scattering the leaves by the foot of the trees around. But they were too weak to affect us.

“I think I understand you a bit Naito. The sight I witnessed seems to have conveyed a message to me. But what’s the real reason for your aversion of the shinobi?”

I could see a hint of a smile form at his mouth.

“The real reason? That’s something I can’t really put into words yet”

I could but I won’t.  
As we stopped talking we noticed the sun had vanished behind a number of mountains. The sky had truly turned dark and the cicada began to chirp.

“Let’s head back” I uttered as I began walking.

Kotta turned around and began walking alongside me as we descended the mountain.

…

“I don’t think I’ll be at the academy for a few days. The medic who checked said that I need to rest my hand for at least a week” Kotta said as we reached the academy.

“That’s tough since it was your right hand that was injured. Well it would be better for you to be at home otherwise you’ll probably pull another stunt and injure your entire arm like that one time” I said.

“Well I just hope you get well soon. Interesting conversation is tough to find. Guess I’ll have to pay attention to class for the next few days” I continue.

“Huh so you’re finally putting the effort into becoming a shinobi it’s good that you’ve had a change of heart” Kotta said sarcastically.

“Have you damaged your head too? You should also get that checked out” I said as I began walking away with a smirk.

“Ha Ha you wish” he said as he began walking in the opposite direction.

After that exchange I found myself standing outside the front door of my house. It seemed like I had reached back faster than I expected.

I knocked with my knuckles tapping them to make some sort of beat.

*tap* *taptap* *tap* *taptap*

Oh this sounded good

*tap* *taptap-

My hand stopped in the air. I felt someone grasp it so I looked up.

“Oh Dad. Hey”

My Dad had a strange look on his face. Normally when he’d see me do stupid stuff like this he’d start to lecture me on various reasons to stop my childish antics.

But I was technically a child so I couldn’t help it. Also my hand was on a path to knocking into his forehead before it was caught. That might have warranted a word or two at the very least.

“Naito come on inside”

“Yeah” I said as I took off my footwear.

Our house was built with Japanese architecture. It was also apparently an ancestral house that was built in the warring era period.

Of course that made it pretty hard for any sort of renovations to take place. But it had its own charm that the current modern advances didn’t seem to contain.

Or maybe that’s just my way of taking it as a positive.

“Did something happen Dad?” I asked as we began walking across the halls.

“In a way. We have a guest”

“A guest? Anyone I might know?”

“You have seen him when you were a child but it’s been a long time since he’s come to visit. Anyway be on your best behaviour”

“I will”

I wasn’t expecting someone to be present this late. Guests were really rare in our household and for one to arrive this late was definitely on the strange side.

Nonetheless I followed him to our dining room. Opening the thin door my Father stepped inside as I followed after him.

An unfamiliar figure sat around the dinner table.

No he was familiar but I didn’t remember him from my time as a child. 

A tanned old man with a round face.

He possessed an intense expression and was sipping a cup of herbal tea as he spoke to my mother and little sister.  
“Kitsuchi it’s been a while since I’ve seen you” The man said as he hugged my father.

He then turned his gaze towards me as a slight smile appeared on his face.

“Oh Naito, it's been a long time you've grown so tall” He said, comparing the two of us.

I had certainly grown tall. Being about 12 I was about 5 feet which was slightly on the larger side for my age. But the difference between our heights really encapsulated that fact.

That and the fact that he was actually pretty short by himself.

“Grandpa?” I said with uncertainty.

I knew who he was but I decided to play the part.

“See, what did I tell you he did recognize you,” My father said to the man I recognised as my grandfather.

“Heh” My grandfather sat down around the dining table and began to sip his tea.

My father followed him and so did I. 

As the two of us sat down. The family began talking about various things.

…

As it began to get late me and my sister were told to go sleep in our respective rooms by our mother who also came along.

The three of us exited the room leaving behind my dad and grandfather. I was told to wait where I was as my mother took my sister towards her room.

“It’s tough isn’t it”

“Yeah, I don’t really know what to do about it”

I could hear voices from the dining room.

“Just do what you need too. If he fails then we’ll find another way”

“Are you implying that you’re going to use your position?”

“He’s a bright kid. I can already see that he see possesses the potential to become a ninja”  
“Isn’t that deceitful since you are the highest authority”

“Believe me kitsuchi. I know what I’m doing”

I couldn’t hear anything more as they began speaking in whispers. 

My mother arrived soon after prompting me to head to my room.

I laid down on my futon as I stared up at the ceiling. 

The life I’d come to live was starting to get hectic. I was to become a shinobi since that was my calling. 

But it conflicted with my own philosophy.

Maybe I was naive, though at this moment I was too tired to think as I drifted to sleep.


	2. Strange rep

A few days had passed since my grandfather's sudden visit. I had continued to the academy as always with my little sister in tow.

Normally I’d be walking with Kotta but since he’s out of it my little sister tagged along. It had been a long time since the two of us had walked together like this. The common thing would be for her to ignore me during the academy due to my reputation.

Nonetheless I appreciated it since it made the other students were a bit wary when they tried to approach me.

Finally after walking in silence for a while we finally made it to the academy building. 

“Take care, Nii-san,” my sister said.

“I will, see you later,” I said with a light smile.

She quickly walked away from me.

‘Guess I’ll head to class’

I stretched my arms feeling the cracking sounds then began to walk inside.

The academy was an interesting site for sure. Almost all of the building was created by a number of earth release users under the orders of the first tsuchikage.

It actually used to be a place where strategy meetings used to take place until the second tsuchikage converted it to a ninja academy. Due to this there are a number of rooms that are forbidden for anyone to enter since they might contain data or any intel of certain shinobi.

Guards walked by checking around for any suspicious activity. They would mostly patrol some of the lower floors but occasionally they would come up to where we students were.

Climbing up about two storeys of stairs I finally made it to my classroom. The students were all minding their own business until I had come in.

Seeing me enter a number of eyes turned to me.

I paid them no heed as I took my seat. Luckily I could hear footsteps of our teacher approaching.

Finally the teacher arrived. 

If I were asked to describe the reason my classmates were so enamored with me. I wouldn’t be able to answer.

It might have been the kind nature I showed when people seemed to have needed help or the natural charisma I seemed to have had.

The people around me would more or less say that I was a natural born leader and I get where they’re coming from. For my age I had a mature thought process that would be comparable to a cynical war veteran. I never experienced war though.

Having an adult thought process would of course make me seem reliable which would be the reason for my reverence.

…

After a while we had to move to the training grounds for taijutsu. There were a number of training grounds situated among the mountains so we had to hike to get up there.

Some of my more adventurous classmates would try to scale the rocks only using their legs. A chakra training exercise similar to the tree climbing present in konoha, though this was far more dangerous.

*crack*

A bunch of rubble began to rush down as a classmate of mine began to fall. Though before he could descend any further he was caught by a huge arm made of rock.

“You kids should stop being so stupid. One wrong step and you’ll be dead. I want everyone to pair up in groups of 2 as they ascend” Taizou-sensei said as he waited behind.

Great. Thanks to their antics I now have to group up with someone. Though I could understand why Taizou-sensei would make us group up.

I looked around for someone decent to join up with but most of my classmates had already paired up. In one on one situations like this I feel like my popularity diminished.

Probably since it’s easier to approach someone you don’t know in a group than if you were alone. Or at least that was my take on it.

Well It wasn’t a big deal. 

I walked up to Taizou-sensei who was in the midst of lecturing the boy who he had just saved. He was trying to explain to him why what he did was dangerous but the boy didn’t seem to understand.

When the conversation briefly stopped I spoke ,“Taizou-sensei I haven’t found a partner and it seems everyone else has already grouped. Can I go on my own?”

Taizou-sensei looked around then nodded.

“It does seem so. Well how about you partner up with Hiroshi here since he seems to be free”

I looked at Hiroshi who seemed hesitant but did not voice any objection.

“Then, now that that’s decided I’ll go check on the others”

With that Taizou-sensei left.

Well…

“Let’s go,” I said as I walked on ahead.

The hike up wasn’t any different than usual. By pushing chakra to my feet as the rock climbing exercise had taught us I managed to easily keep pace, though…

I turned too look behind, my companion was unnaturally slow. His method of climbing was awkward as he put too much force in his steps.

He also was also short though that would be considered the average height for our age.He had dark black hair unlike my lighter shade of brown along with similar eyes.

Not wanting to leave the guy behind I went up to him to see what the problem was.

“Are you doing okay?” I asked as I peered at him.

His face seemed to be covered in sweat as if it was taking him a great deal of effort to climb the mountain.

“I’m fine. It’s just that today might be a bad day” he said as he began to walk forward.

I stood back as I watched him make the trek up. Seeing how his feet weren’t sticking properly to the terrain I understood what the problem was.

“You’re doing it wrong!” I said, matching his pace.  
“Wrong?” Hiroshi looked at me oddly as he spoke.

“Yeah, you seem to be pushing too much chakra into your feet thus shattering parts of where your standing on into dust making it difficult to gain a footing”

Though the ground under his feet was turning to dust it wasn’t to a degree that would actually cause the ground to break up unless he was already on unsteady ground. Though that did explain why he seemed so tired.

“So what do I do?” he asked me as he stood up straight.

I thought for a moment. I wasn’t really much of a teacher but I could give it a try.

“First you need to calm down,” I said.

“When you push chakra to your feet you should let it flow freely rather than force it down”

‘The concept was understood I hope’

I looked to Hiroshi as he tried to follow my instructions.

“So like this” he said as he tried walking again.

“No, no, try to be more relaxed, let your arms free” I said.

He was walking stiffly so I needed him to at least straighten up his posture. Chakra flow could be improved by improving posture since it relaxed the chakra points. A tensed up person could find it harder to use chakra due to this.

Hiroshi seemed to have calmed down as he began walking once more. I checked on his steps to see.

“Well you seem to be getting the hang of it. Let’s head on ahead the others must be waiting” I said as I took the lead.

After a few minutes of climbing we had all made our way to the summit. The summit of the mountain had a huge part of it flattened by earth style users to make it easier for us students to train.

I cracked my knuckles as I prepared for what was to come. If I was destined to be a ninja, well I’ll at least have fun doing it.

“Okay class, everyone will have a spar against the partner they teamed up with. So go on ahead and begin” Taizou-sensei said.

All the students began to rush forward.

Unlike the taijutsu matches we normally had here we could use any techniques available barring weapons of course. So Ninjutsu, Genjutsu etc.

“Fire style: Flaming Spiral”

“Wind Style:Crescent slash”

A vortex of flame sprouted up which was immediately sliced up by two crescent wind blades and extinguished. Cinders flew all around as smoke started to rise.

“Well should we begin Naito?” Hiroshi said.

“Sure, let's go for it” I said.

Both of us waited for a while watching the others movements.

Hiroshi moved first.

“Lightning style: Javelin” 

He rushed towards me as he materialised a lightning javelin and threw it towards me. 

I stood still waiting for it to reach closer-

“Wind style: Sudden Breeze”

A sudden air current made its way towards the javelin knocking it off it’s direction and into the ground where it dissipated.

Hiroshi wasn’t prepared for me to take his attack out so easily as he seemed to backtrack. But I didn’t let go of the initiative coming up to him with a clenched fist.

“Lightning style:Plasma grip”

Electricity flowed towards me almost instantaneously.

“Earth style:Hiding like a mole”

I immediately disappeared into the ground as the lightning jutsu passed over me harmlessly. Digging through the ground I stopped when I reached just under Hiroshi.

I grabbed both of his legs.

“Lightning Style:Discharge”

A weak current flowed from me to Hiroshi as he got shocked. The jutsu wasn’t really that effective though since lightning wasn’t my affinity.

I expected Hiroshi to try to dodge the attack but he just took it. 

“Lightning Style:ThunderDome”

As I heard that I let go of Hiroshi’s legs and jumped out of the ground. The place I just was at got struck by a bolt of lightning.

“Fire style:Burning jealousy”

“Lightning Style:ThunderDome”

Our attacks clashed, sending sparks though my attack eventually overpowered Hiroshi’s pushing him back.

The match was decided.

I walked up to Hiroshi and gave him a hand up.

“That was a good spar,” I said.

“Same to you. Man you’re kinda crazy you know that” he said.

“Well I guess I am. Let’s head back to sensei-” 

“Groooowww”

The voice that interrupted me was animalistic and fearless. Hiroshi and I looked around as did the others around us as to the origin of this peculiar voice.

“Gather around here class we’re leaving”-he turned to look at some far off mountain-”what kind of chakra signature is this?”

He muttered the last part to himself but I managed to overhear.  
I could also feel an unusual aura wash upon me as a silhouette appeared and vanished.


	3. Chapter 3

The roar that we had heard sent the entire class in panic. Some students began to run around in panic while others just stayed still for they had already given into the fear.

Hiroshi, who was beside me, stood frozen for a solid minute until I gave him a nudge that broke him from his stupor.

“What was-”

“I don’t know” I interrupted him.

“And it doesn’t matter whether or not I would. All I know is whatever made that sound is dangerous. You need to calm down and try to get the other students to calm down as well” I continued.

As I spoke to him Hiroshi seemed to ease up.

‘Well that’s one down’

I turned over to Taizou-sensei who seemed to have gathered most of the students present there. Some were still afraid and weren’t moving while others were just avoiding every person they saw.

Things were getting tense but my tension seemed to ease when I saw a familiar face surrounded by a number of ninja with jounin attire.

It was my father. He and a number of jounin were visible in the distance.

“Taizou, we'll take care of this so get the kids to safety” my father said as his gaze shifted to me for a second before he left to join the other jounin.

“Understood Kitsuchi”-He turned to us-”Students we’re leaving now!” 

The tense tone in Taizou-sensei’s voice alone did more than enough to convince the students.

As we began to walk away I saw the jounin begin to use earth release techniques to create a barricade. They then began to scale the barricade and view the area around for any threats.

After reaching a fair distance away from the training ground I turned my gaze away from the jounin since I was too far away to make out any details. 

Soon we reached the academy building.

We quickly entered and made our way back to our classroom. I Had noticed the guards weren’t at their usual posts.  
Therefore the hallway seemed more empty when we passed through it.

When we finally reached our classroom I was finally able to calm down and relax. 

‘That thing definitely wasn’t human’

I couldn’t assume a human to create a raw guttural that was so fear inducing. It couldn’t have been a human.

The class had been in deep silence ever since we arrived back. There wasn’t a single sound made by anyone since we were told by Taizou-sensei to head back to class.

The atmosphere made me weary.

Taizou-sensei had the same grim expression on his face. He seemed to be contemplating something.

After what seemed like an eternity we were finally dismissed.

As I was leaving the class I was called by Taizou-sensei.

“Naito tell your father I have something to discuss with him, he’ll probably be back home tonight or so I’ve heard” he said

“I’ll be sure to do that. Do you have any idea of what’s going on?”

“I do but it would be too complicated to explain. For now just take care and stay safe us adults should be able to deal with this matter quickly”

With that he left the classroom.

…

As dusk arrived I woke up and began heading towards the dining room. Last I checked the time it was ‘7:00’. My folks liked to eat early or maybe it was iwagakure tradition. Nonetheless I slid open the door to the dining room.

The dining table was occupied by two people but none of them were my Father. I shook my head and went to join them.

…

“Is father coming back home today?” I asked as I swallowed some rice.

“Who knows? It seems like he’s caught up in some perilous business” My mother answered.

Kurotsuchi silently ate her food, not adding any input to the conversation as always.

“Done,” she said, handing her bowl to mother, then leaving for her room.

Unlike her my bowl of rice was almost untouched. The mysterious circumstances of the day were weighing down heavily on me.

But even more so was that bizarre feeling I experienced before.

I disrupted that thought process and went back to my unfinished rice bowl.

…

With my dinner finished I decided to pay Kotta a visit. The next few days were declared to be holidays so I didn’t necessarily have a set curfew except the one I enforced on myself.

With my plan of action decided I made my way to the front door where I promptly met eyes with a familiar man.

“Father, you're back, all of us have already had dinner. Mother kept your portion on the dining table to make sure to reheat it” I said.

“Fine I’ll go have it” he said.

“Also Taizou-sensei said he had something to tell you-”

“I already managed to meet up with Taizou”

My father interrupted me.

“So you’re aware of what’s going on?” I asked, getting increasingly curious.

“I might be but this is nothing for you to worry about. The academy has been suspended for a few days so spend some time on your studies and don't play all day” With that he began to walk away.

“On that mountain I also felt something strange-” his gaze was sharp, he was serious.

“Just let us adults handle this. Now go to bed so you can get up early and do whatever you want tomorrow”

After saying his piece he left.  
‘Father why do you have to be so cryptic’

After speaking to him my urge of going out receded and my desire to unveil this hidden mystery arose. I headed to bed early spending all my thoughts on baseless theories until sleep finally hit me.

…

With the arrival of dawn I woke up. 

All night I had deliberated on the mystery though I failed to gain any actual insight. It was an oversight on my part to believe that I could understand anything without the required knowledge.

Well I had a couple of free days approaching and I wasn’t going to spend them all mulling over something that seems seriously above my paygrade.

So that’s why I had made my way to Lapidarius park. Kotta should’ve already got the news that the academy had been suspended for a few days so it wouldn’t be that strange for him to already be hanging around here.

That guy had a surprising amount of endurance with all the injuries he’s taken plus I’ve never seen him cry ever. I’ve seen almost all of my classmates cry at some time or the other most during their younger years, some even as far as yesterday.

Of course I was an anomaly so you wouldn’t find me crying from a paper cut or spraining my leg.

In that regard the two of us were similar.

Entering through the entrance I caught that curt smile that I had known all too well.

I could see a number of my classmates around too but they seemed to be in their senses today.

‘Well maybe they are growing up’

It would be relieving if that was the case.

Nonetheless I walked up to Kotta and stood beside him.

“Hey, how’s your hand?”I said as I pointed to it.

“It’s perfectly fine,” He said, moving his previously injured hand with no resistance.

“Didn’t the medic say that you needed a few more days at least or did you find some alternate medicine?” I asked him quizzaciously.

“Don’t worry about it. You already know an injury as minor as this couldn’t keep me at bay” he replied.

“Well you are right” I said, accepting his words.

“So what happened with the academy you got any ideas?”

“Hardly. What I do know is it's something important and potentially dangerous which all leads in to that roar from yesterday”

“Well I wouldn’t expect them to shut down the academy for something inconsequential and what’s this about a ‘roar’?”

“Well we all heard something resembling a roar during our mock battles at the training grounds yesterday which seems to be the reason why the academy was suspended”

“Any news from your father?”

“Nope. On the contrary he seems to be trying to keep me from learning about this. Well not that I can blame him, if it really is something potentially serious then I can at least understand his sentiment”

“So we really have nothing huh?” Kotta sighed.

“Well we should probably be ignoring it anyway” I said moving from the wall I was leaning on.

I scanned the surroundings around.

“The greater mystery I suppose would be me not being surrounded by a crowd. In an open place like this at non-school hours I could have almost bet that I would’ve been swarmed”

Was I still asleep or something.

“Oh well I told them to leave you alone”

“And they listened?” 

“Well yeah..”

“Then why didn’t you try doing that any of the times before”

“Well you probably should speak to them y’know. They may seem like fanatics but that’s just their way of showing their admiration. On the other hand you could just tell them to stop and they would obey” 

Kotta had a point. The reason I hadn’t denied the crowd up until now was driven by some strange fear I had that they would all hate me or the like if I went out and did so. The reason for my popularity:being his grandson.


	4. The mountain's beast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Going forth on his curiosity on the roar he heard back then Naito tries to gather information about the mountain.

As much as I wanted to move on and get a hold of the situation with the people who revered me. I had better things to accomplish.

I dusted the book I was holding in my hand.

“Another dud huh..” I said as I kept it back where I found it.

“So why did you want to come here? I know you’re a studious guy but you really don’t need to be studying so much”

Kotta was on the other side of the table and was reading a book labelled ‘How to take a life in 10 steps- By Rutaken’. 

‘Man the guy was calling me a nerd but here he is doing his own studying-’

Though it isn’t something I want to inquire about.

“The studying part was just an excuse so the librarian would let us in. What I’m really searching for is folktales or fables that depict nightmarish creatures. Do you know anything about old legends or myths? ”

“Personally I wasn’t really fond of that stuff but my grandma might have some ideas of old myths. Why don’t you ask your grandfather or maybe your mother?”

“Gramps is a no go since he’ll be busy with the current situation and he’ll probably not tell me anything concrete. Mother might let it slip but she might also inform father that I might know about this”

“Well then just see what you can find here then we can go back to my house and see what grandma can tell us. Did you check the forbidden section maybe there’s something there”

“I have an idea what might be in the forbidden section and it probably doesn’t have anything to do with what we’re looking for” I said as I looked at the adults only sign that was outside the forbidden section.

Kotta looked confused but I wasn’t about to give him the talk here.

I decided to get an idea from the librarian. The guy seemed to be pretty old and well he seemed pretty difficult to approach, probably not very sociable.

Just the type of guy I needed.

“Hey there?” I said trying to gain his attention.

The man looked down from his newspaper.

“What?”

Didn’t think I’d get this far.

“Do you know anything about the strange presence in the mountains?”

“Mountains, what Mountains?”

“Uh the mountains that lead out of the village. There had been some kind of disturbance there recently”

“Why do you kids want to know about it?”

“Because we’re kids?”

“Fine fair enough if it gets you of my tail I can tell you why the ninja were sent to the mountains”

“So he did know something,” Kotta muttered to himself.

Kotta said as he came and stood by next to Naito.

“It isn’t a very interesting story but I’ll begin. A long time ago, this dates back to the founding of Iwagakure. When the village was being constructed the people would run into a lot of problems. One of those would be animals. While Ninja of enemy villages were certainly also a big problem they weren’t as persistent in the disruption.”

I just nodded as I gestured to him to continue.

“So these beasts would ravage the area, destroy crops and hunt for prey. These weren’t your foot sized chicken they were much larger with sharp claws and wide jaws. If you were caught in their sight there was little faith that you would escape. So do things make sense now?”

The explanation was pretty vague but I could get the gist of it..or at least that’s what I thought.

“So the beast whose roar I heard was similar to the beasts of old?”

“Probably we were never able to eliminate the lot of them as they would retreat deep into the mountains. Out there not even a sensory ninja could find them easily”

“Sounds like you were personally involved in this?”

“Yeah I was, ya don’t believe me?”  
“No No I know better than to judge by appearance” I slowly backed off and gestured to Kotta to follow me as I went out of the store.

I paced along for a few seconds outside until Kotta walked up to me.

“Do you really think that old man’s story was real? It sounded awfully vague to me”

“I have no clue. He could be telling us the truth or just playing a prank on us”

“A prank with how serious that guy looked?”

“Hey as I said-”

“Yeah you can’t judge a person by their appearance, I understand” Kotta cut me off as we both stood out at the mercy of the sun.

“So what now? Even if we seem to have a clue of what this thing is, it doesn’t really feel like a good idea to interrupt. Especially since the librarian inside said that this thing exceeded us in height.”

“Yeah I never planned on getting involved with it. I was just curious is all”

“Well with your curiosity now dealt with. How about we get some training done?”

“Training huh?” 

We both walked along until we found a bench.

“What, you're not interested in training? Shouldn’t you be trying to keep your body in the best possible condition to avoid death”

“Well of course I do some training but not as much as you in that regard” I looked towards the mountains i.e the area where we would normally train, “Plus where would we even go the mountain seems to be occupied”

I could occasionally see a blur moving on the mountain so I assumed that they were still hard at work.

“Hmm I guess we can’t use the training grounds as we used too. Fine then I guess I’m heading back home”

“Yeah, sure see you later. I think I’ll stay here for a while”

I waited until Kottal left then turned my eyes to the mountain once more.   
Something about the mountain seemed to be calling for me. But I ignored the calling and just continued to laze around on the bench.

“Hey let’s go and check that place out..” a boy’s voice said.

I turned around and saw a few familiar faces.

“You guys…” I said as I began to stand up from the bench.

But at that moment the three familiar faces disappeared. 

‘Those were my classmates,right?’ I thought as I scratched my head in confusion as I tried to reason why they would be running.

Not thinking much about it, I went back to lazily staring out at the sky and thinking about unnecessary things.

…

As dusk began to approach. I began to head back home. The people around also seemed to be heading back home I assumed. As I passed by Lapidarius park once more I stopped.

The children present there seemed tense for some reason. 

“Oh It’s Naitou can you come here for a second?” a brown haired girl called out to me.

I recognised her as one of my classmates.

Normally I would just avoid any such requests but the kid who called out to me seemed serious.

“You called, did something happen?”

“Yeah we ran into a problem Abe, Dokuro and Takai were bragging earlier about how they were going to go to the mountain and defeat the monster there” 

I had a bad feeling that these were the names of the classmates I had seen earlier.

“Well what can I do about it? Just tell one of the chunin or jonin around town about it” I said, giving the easiest solution I could come up with.

“We can’t do that you know they’ll be punished severely for being caught going into such a dangerous place”

“Maybe they deserve it. How about you just call a jonin? It will be better to have them safe then not, right?”

Nobody responded to my words.

I seemed to have forgotten that I was dealing with children here. Conventional logic doesn’t seem to be very effective against their fear of the authority that is present.

After thinking for a while I finally decided.

“Okay you win I’ll head on over there to check up on them”

“That’s good we just wanted someone strong to come along with us”

“Oh yeah that’s not happening. I’ll be going alone”

“But-”

“Sorry this can’t be negotiated on. I think having too many people around will make this rescue mission more of a disaster”

“But you going there alone will be even more of a problem”

“Me going alone is the best chance we have”

Plus I can’t use my bloodline limit when others are present. That’s why I can’t even take Kotta along. And I always did like breaking the rules.

It seemed hypocritical to do but I felt ignoring this wouldn’t be a good idea.

“Let's head on over to the mountains”

All of us students who were present at the park gathered around near the base of the mountain.

“So you guys all wait here in case I don’t come back you might need to actually call someone”

And with that I began running up the mountain. Using my chakra through my feet I had a much better foothold as I climbed up. I had to be stealthy though so I began to slow my pace as I began to reach up.

I stopped for a moment taking a look around. Seeing nothing of worth I began moving once more keeping an eye out for anything and anyone.

“Earth style:Burrow sprint”   
Using the jutsu I began to burrow through the ground like a mole or a diglett. Which would probably help me avoid most threats.

The only problem was I couldn’t see much so I had to focus on using my ears to pick up voices.

As I was moving I heard a voice coming from my left and immediately switched directions. As the voices began sounding more audible I appeared out of my burrow and jumped out only to be caught by a ninja.

“What’s a kid doing all the way out here?” The man who caught me by my shirt said as he stared at my face.

“Hello”

“Hmm..I thought you were familiar you’re Kitsuchi’s brat,don’t you remember me”

“No I don’t. Also could you let me down”

“I’m Izuhara, don't forget it brat and no I won’t let you down. Didn’t your dad tell you not to come here?”

“Did he?” I said as I looked innocently towards them.

“You gotta be kiddin me”

“Yea I was lying. He did tell me”

“Then why the hell did you come all the way out here kid?-”

“Calm down Izuhara let the kid speak” another man said interrupting Izuhara.

I looked at the 5-6 other ninja who were present there and resolved myself.

“Three classmates of mine seemed to have arrived out here and I wanted to get them out of here before anything bad happens” I said with no hint of humour present.

“And you decided that it was a good idea to come rescue them all by yourself?” Izuhara said.

“No. This was mostly just to stop the other students from also following me”

“Then you stay here. I’ll go and scout up ahead”

“Fine I’ll stay put”

Saying his piece the man named Izuhara swiftly made his way forward. 

Ever since I had arrived on the mountain I had been feeling off. And that feeling seemed to be tied to the roar I had heard back then.

Having no way to force my way through I sat down surrounded by the other Ninja.

“I’m Hirai what’s your name, kid?” the other guy from earlier said as he walked up to me.

“Naito.”

“So Naito you don’t need to worry about your classmates too much. Izuhara should be able to find them in no time”

“Why’s that? does he have some sort of special ability?”

“He’s a sensor ninja so he can easily pick up on chakra signals. The only problem being that kids your age have pretty low reserves so picking them out in a mountain like this is pretty difficult”

A sensor ninja would definitely be a good candidate for rescue missions. Well I guess I could just relax until Izuhara comes back then receive a lecture from my parents back home later.

Just hope he gets back to us fast.


	5. The fall

About 10 minutes had passed since I had been found by the ninja at the mountain. 

Izuhara said he’d be able to handle it. I shouldn’t underestimate a Jounin they’ve probably been through much worse to get to the level they are at.

“What’s wrong Naito you look grim?” Hirai said as he walked up to me.

The other ninja kept their focus on the surroundings. Most likely in an effort to react to anything immediately.

“It’s nothing really. It’s just that the Sensory Ninja from before hasn’t returned”

“Well it’s hardly been a few minutes, I did say earlier that he might have trouble finding them. Anything else on your mind?”

“Well I’m also bored out of my mind”

Sitting around and just looking at my surroundings for any signs of danger was as expected. It was mentally taxing.

“Hmm.. I don’t really have any stories in mind; it seems like you’ll just have to bear it for now. Oh how about you do some chakra training exercises?”

At hearing the words ‘chakra training exercises’ I turned to him.

“Are you talking about the ones we do at school? Is so I’ll pass since I’ve pretty much mastered it”

Hirai scratched his head.

“Well if the one’s from school are no good then I guess we can do something a little advanced. How about a chunin level exercise that will help enhance your senses”

“That sounds interesting sure let’s do it”

Hirai nods as he raises a finger.

“First to begin you need to clear your mind out of all distracting thoughts. To do that you need to close your eyes and focus only on your breathing. How about you try that out?”

Following his instructions I close my eyes.

The moment I close my eyes various thoughts rush to my head.

‘What was that sound?’

‘Where is Izuhara?’

‘Are those children still alive?’

I calmed myself breathing in and out. Any thought that began to form was immediately disrupted. My concentration was rigid yet flexible.

This is it.

*snap*

Then my concentration was disrupted. As I opened I saw Hirai snap his fingers one more time.

“Huh did something happen?” I asked, slightly confused.

“Nothing happened, it's just that I’m surprised you were able to take to it this quickly. Most children your age would even struggle to clear their minds.”

“Well there are always outliers”

“That’s true. Though aren’t your academy grades pretty bad, I'm pretty sure I’ve heard Kitsuchi complain about them quite a few times”

“Eh well I don’t really like the academy. Having Talent doesn’t always equate to interest. Maybe I do have the potential to be the best in the class or maybe I don’t. Either way it doesn’t matter”

“You’re quite pessimistic for a kid… but well I guess it’s fine. So shall we continue with the exercise?”

“There was more to it?”

“Yeah I didn’t expect you to get it in one try so I only told you half of the instructions. The other half deals with using chakra to increase the sensitivity of your senses.”

“So what do I have to do after reaching that state of concentration?”

“After you’ve reached the state of concentration you have the focus on the senses you want to enhance. For now try to focus on only the ears otherwise you might suffer from chakra exhaustion”

“Fine I’ll only do the ears”

No need to rebel here plus chakra exhaustion sounded like a pain.

I closed my eyes once more. 

Diverting the thoughts away and preventing new ones from being formed I eventually reached the state of concentration I had achieved a few seconds ago.

This time though I let my chakra flow through my ears by focusing on it. I pushed a little at a time until finally I felt a difference.

My ears began to pick up things more clearly. I could hear the chirping of the cicadas, the strong gusts of winds and the sound of trees swaying.

A myriad of sounds began to seep into me.

Though a few seconds later my concentration broke and my eyes opened.

“I was able to do it for a few seconds but I couldn’t maintain my focus under all those sounds” I said as I yawned.

“That’s fine as I’ve said this is a chunin level exercise honestly even a few seconds is good enough. Though you’ll need a lot of practice to get better at this”

“Well I guess practicing this isn’t so bad after all”

As I stand up.

Hirai suddenly turns to the opposite direction. 

“It seems one of your classmates is heading this way. Though Izuhara isn’t with him”

I looked to the direction Hirai was facing and sure enough I could see someone approaching us.

“Yeah that definitely seems like one of my classmates”

Hirai dashed forward, picked the kid up and brought him to where I was almost instantaneously.

‘Was that the shunshin’

Well it at least seemed like it.

“Naito you’re here too?” The kid said as Hirai put him down.

“Yeah, the class asked me to look for you guys. Where are the two other guys who were with you?”

“I don’t know. The last thing I remember is hearing a roar making us all split up”

“How long ago did you hear that roar?” Hirai asked.

“About half an hour back”

“Is that so? Well for now just stay here. We have somebody looking for your friends”

*Graahhh*

Another roar.

I tried to turn around but I was held in the air by the scuff of my shirt by Hirai as he tossed me into some shrubbery.

I managed to get proper footing preventing my face from hitting the ground. Looking around I saw my classmate also had been tossed into the shrubbery though unlike me he hit the ground face first.

Once I felt camouflaged enough I took a look towards Hirai and the other ninja and the beast they were fighting against.

The roar came from a 6 foot tall lion. It wasn’t an ordinary lion though as it’s veins were glowing and it’s eyes had no pupils. It also seemed to have some kind of barrier of wind around it that would extend whenever it roared sending dust towards me.

Hirai and the other Ninja seemed to be matching the best in terms of strength but in speed it was overwhelming them.

The tree beside me was uprooted due to the strength of the gusts that were being generated.

*Graah*

The beast turned towards my classmate who had fallen down and was rushing towards him. 

My classmate noticed this and fainted.

Is this the first death I would experience.

No. Not yet. There’s still something I can do.

“Steel release: Needle Road”

Spikes began to appear between the beast and my classmate. As the beast stepped on the spikes it writhed in pain and thrashed about.

One of the ninja managed to get my classmate out of danger. But before they could come for me the beast ran straight towards me.

“Steel Release: Barrier”

As fast as I could do I do the signs for my shield jutsu. 

But before the shield can fully form I’m rammed into.

“Gah”

My puny shield cracks under the force of the beast's attack and I’m launched into the air. I open my eyes and see myself falling.

How high had I been launched? 

What I did know was that I had been launched away from the mountain.

I was falling fast. 

“Earth style:Clenched fist”

My arms began to get coated by rocks as they grew in size until I had big rock arms.

I looked around my surroundings and punched as hard as I could, displacing my momentum. 

Since I didn’t have any more jutsu for my legs I had to slow myself down like this.

Eventually after the many punches at the wall I managed to get a proper grip. I slowly put my legs on the wall as I began to pump chakra through it.

Using my hands and feet with the help of my chakra allowing me to stick to the surface I Finally Managed to climb down.

My surroundings seemed dark as my feet touched the ground.

Since it was night the moonlight didn’t seem to penetrate low enough.

Taking cautious steps and using my hands to figure out my surroundings I carefully moved through the place.

Where was I anyway?

Due to the lack of light I don’t remember exactly where I fell. All I knew was that I was probably far away from the mountain.

I looked to the sky once more then began walking once more.

After walking for a while I finally managed to reach what seemed like some kind of cave entrance.

I could make out the entrance due to some unknown source lighting it up. 

As I walked closer my surroundings became clearer and I didn’t have to be as cautious as before.

The light source turned out to be from some pillars with a flame above it.

I used the light to try to guide myself out of this place.

As I moved further inside I found something even more surprising.

Gemstones were present all around the caves making me cover my eyes from the initial light.

“This place..”

It was a mine.

Or at least it seemed to be one.

But if there is a mine here there should be people also nearby. Those lit pillars should be evidence that people were here.

It had been about an hour by now. In the worst case scenario I guess I could just try climbing up but I don’t think my chakra would last long enough since the distance I fell wasn’t any joke.

Seeing no other way I just decided to head through the mine to see where it led to. 

The further in I went the colder the mine became contrary to what I expected.My surroundings seemed to get more foggy the further I went.

But going back wasn’t an option now.  
Maybe another hour had passed until I finally reached an area. The fog began to clear and there was a lake before my eyes.

“A lake?”

An underground spring maybe? Water must’ve trickled down after decades of precipitation and formed this.

But this place gave me an ominous feeling. Like it wasn’t real.

It felt otherworldly.

Ripples began to form at the lake’s surface.

I took a step back as a huge wave splashed towards me which I dodged.

*Graah*

A wolf with gemstones adorned around it began to swim away from the centre of the lake.

At that moment I saw a light filter in from the other side of the lake.

Had it been morning? 

Maybe I spent a lot of time stuck down here. But if that light led to an exit....

I ran towards the side of the walls as the beast came towards me. It ran straight past me ramming into the wall and knocking some rocks into the water.

“Once more” I said as I taunted the wolf again.

Getting irritated, it rammed into the wall again and again. Unlike the lion from before this wolf was slow and I could match it’s movements without much difficulty.

As the rocks began to pile up in the lake. I dodged one last time as I jumped towards the lake.

Though I didn’t fall in the water I stopped right on top of a stone. 

The rocks that had been knocked down by the wolf formed stepping stones that easily allowed me to cross over to the other side.

The wolf tried to catch up to me by creating waves to knock me off but by the time it managed I was already at the other side.

With the entrance being small enough for a person to fit through I didn’t expect the wolf to manage to make it through.

After turning one last time to see whether the wolf was coming I began to run towards the source of light.

Let’s get out.


	6. A way out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finally making it far enough through the cave Naito seems to have found a way out but there's a problem.

The light that was being radiated towards me was definitely peculiar. It was shining right in my eyes but I wasn’t being blinded. It felt strange to be frank.

After walking for a while I reached what seemed to be multiple paths present. 

All of them looked similar so I had no idea which one to take.

My surroundings also seemed strange..almost otherworldly.

The light that seemed to be shining in my eyes vanished as light particles started to scatter down in irregular patterns. 

Eventually they began to gather up together into a single structure.

Creating a woman.

‘What is this?’

Have I intruded in the territory of an evil spirit. Like I knew ghosts existed in this world but it’s strange seeing one up and personal next to me-

While I was thinking the ghost seemed to have come over to me and was observing me. She had purple hair and wore something similar to kimono but of a different style from anything I had seen in the village.

“Ahem” I cleared my throat as I looked at the ghost floating all around me.

“Who are you?” she asked curiously as she floated in front of me.

I guess I’ll just answer this clearly. Right now she didn’t seem particularly vindictive and I didn’t want to change that.

“I’m a resident of Iwagakure. Due to a battle I was sort of launched down here” -I scratched my head- “And you? Who are you? Or to be more accurate...What are you?” I said as her hand phased through my own.

“Me I’m a ghost” she answered nonchalantly.

“I mean I get that..”

Should I push further? Maybe she has some sort of traumatic past if so I’d rather not make the mistake of angering her.

“I guess you’re a ghost then. What’s your name?”

“Me I’m Erisu”

“Naito” I say as I go to shake her hand.

Too bad I momentarily forgot she was a ghost.

Probably the worst handshake attempt in the universe.

“So do you know the way out?” I asked as I pointed to the various paths behind her.

“I might have an idea but if I help you then you’ll leave right?” she said.

“Well yeah, I’m alive you see if I waited here I’ll eventually die”

“No wait don’t leave! It’s been so many years since I’ve seen someone else. If you wait long enough you’ll be able to join me”

Yeah I think I should get going.

As my feet began to move Erisu blocked my path. Well she couldn’t actually block my path since I just phased through her. But she kept floating in front of me that it was starting to get irritating.

“What?“ I asked as politely as I could.

“You’re leaving?”

“Yes I am” I said, taking one of the multiple paths.

“Wait a minute” 

I didn’t stop and continued walking.

“That’s the wrong way”

I immediately walked back to the entrance to the multiple paths.

“It is?”

“Well it leads to a dead end eventually. You can go ahead if you want to, since when you die your soul should be able to return here”

“...”

I had no Idea what to do now. I could just go straight on ahead but If it really is a dead end then I’m screwed.

“Do you know the way out? Will you help me get out?” I asked, hoping for the best.

She stared at me for a few seconds.

“Hmm I do know the way out but I might need you to do something for me” She said as she turned her back to me.

“What do you want me to do?” I said apprehensively.

“I want you to get me out of this cave” she said as she turned towards me.

“Why? Can’t you just phase through the rocks around and leave?”

“That isn’t possible. Every time I try to leave this place I’m forcibly anchored back here” she said as she pointed to a strange looking rock.

“So how do I help you get out?”

This was a risky deal but I wasn’t about to die down here. In case things would get bad I would explain the situation to everyone else. 

“You see this rock I need you to dribble some of your blood over it that should allow me to be able to escape this place”

“And if I do that will you tell me the way out”

“Yes After you do it I will tell you the way out”

“Fine” I said as I walked up to the rock.

I crouched down and observed the rock.

It was more a crystal formation than a rock with all the unique patterns present on it. It was colourless similar to water and emitted a faint light.

I put my finger in my mouth and bit it, then placed it over the crystal. 

As a drop of my blood hit the crystal I felt a chill pass through my body as I began to feel a sudden bout of weakness hit me.

‘What was that’  
I looked down at the crystal as it consumed each drop of blood that hit it. The colourless crystal from the point of contact with my blood began turning red expanding outwards slowly.

I removed my hand as the crystal proceeded to change, until finally the entire crystal had turned blood red.

“Is that it? Now tell me how to get out of here”

“Sure It’s this way” She said as she floated over to a path to the far right.

I walked past her and entered the path.

The path seemed straightforward and there didn’t seem to any more weird creatures present. As I walked forward I noticed someone was tailing me.

“Erisu stop following me, can’t you go somewhere else since you’re free from this place” I said as I noticed the woman from before behind me.

“Well about that I might have lied, ha ha”

“What?” I said as I tried to subside the feeling of irritation by pressing my head.

“The thing is I used to be anchored to that rock before you came along and formed a contact with this place, by forming that contract I’m now anchored to you which prevents us from being separated”

“Well whatever. Though, what’s this thing about a contract?”

“Like I said earlier by dying that rock in your blood you have formed a contract with this place”

“Does this contract have any dangerous aspects to it that can put my life in danger?”

“No-”

“If so I don’t care”

“You aren’t angry that I lied?”

“It’s more so that I’m so mentally exhausted that I don’t think I have it in me to think about anything. I don’t even care anymore let’s just leave this place”

“Of course I’ll lead you” she said energetically. 

As I began following Erisu’s lead I actually began thinking of the events that occurred.   
‘Well she’s just a ghost right’

It’s not like anybody else could see her.

Then again why could I see her? Is it because I died or is there some sort of special ability I have to see spirits? Whatever the case I think I’ll eventually try to gain some information on it-

“Hey Naito listen to me!” She said annoyed.

“Hmm did you say something?” I looked at her.

“Tell me about how the place has changed since I last was out. Narrate it to me”

“No thanks. How about you quiet down for a while you’ve been speaking non stop since we’ve entered this path”

“Guh Rejected” She floated in front of me dejectedly as I walked through her.

“I’d rather not ruin your first impressions, If we hopefully get out that is”

“Hey I didn’t lie about anything else. This path definitely leads outside”

“Ok fine I believe you” 

As we moved further the path became a bit steep along with there being areas that I had to climb up. Eventually I reached the end.

I felt the breeze pass by and rustle my hair.

Climbing up the last bit of rock formations present I managed to get outside.

The dull sunlight hit my eyes. The smell of greenery and the oxygen rich air felt good.

I recognised that it was apparently still early morning and assumed I had been inside that cave system for at least a day.

Looking around I could see Iwagakure in the distance. 

It was pretty far though and my muscles were fatigued from the continuous strain. So I took a seat on some smooth looking rocks and looked around.

“It’s sunlight! How long has it been since I last saw the outside world. Oh are those birds” she said as she floated over to some of the trees in the distance.

She’s like a kid on a picnic.

Well leaving that aside.The important thing to do now was to get back home.

I’ll need to make some sort of signal to inform them I’m here but what. Nothing came to mind.

*growl*

Leaving that aside I need to get something to eat since my stomach’s practically growling.

“Erisu can you check around to see if there are any animals present in the mountain we’re in” I asked her.

She stopped staring at the birds and turned to me.

“Sure but I can’t really go that far away from you so I can only check places that are close by”

“That’s fine just tell me if you see anything that seems edible”

She nodded and went away. Having a person to scout things is definitely useful.

I lied down on my back and began to stare at the sky until I eventually fell asleep.

“Naito! Naito! Wake up!” An annoyingly high pitched voice screamed in my ear.

“Oh Shut up” I said, still half asleep.

Though realizing where I was I quickly got up.

“Oh yeah *yawn* Erisu did you find anything?” I asked.

“I did. Let’s see there were rabbits, wild boars and sheep”

“Hmm well rabbits are no good due to the rabbit starvation phenomena, boar meat could be good but I don’t think I’m well equipped to deal with one at the time, so I guess that narrows it down to the sheep”

I stood up and stretched a bit.

“Ok show me where you found the sheep?”

…

After a few minutes of walking we found ourselves at an especially grassy part of the mountain. About three sheep seemed to be grazing in the area. 

Looking around I couldn’t see any sign of anymore being present. Guess they had separated from their flock for some reason.

This was a good chance.

Among the three two seemed comparatively older as they had larger inward horns while the third didn’t. With this evidence in hand I decided to go for the younger one since the others meat wouldn’t be as appetizing at least that’s what I had heard from Dad.

Now to begin the hunt I had a few options present:

1)Direct confrontation

2)Setting up a trap

3)Camouflaging and attacking

Direct confrontation seems like the worst option. I would just scare them away. A trap could work but I don’t think I have enough chakra to build something reliable with steel release.

So camouflage it is.

“Erisu I’m going to be trying to hunt that sheep so don’t disturb me”

“Understood”

I slowly lowered myself into the grass as I used steel release to create a kunai. I had one chance for a surprise attack so I slowly began moving forward.

The three sheep had separated for a bit as the area they were grazing was bereft of grass. As they moved further away I made my move.

I leaped out of the grass and slashed at the sheep aiming towards it’s heart. As blood, the sheep ran towards me attempting to attack me with it’s horns but I rolled away.

Seeing the chaos erupt the other two sheep began to run towards me.

“You two should have taken the chance to escape” I said as I body tackled the sheep I slashed, knocking it off balance.

“Fire Style: Sparking Dissonance!” I said as I maintained focus.  
Sparks flew from my hand towards the grass in front of the incoming sheep setting it aflame and creating a line of fire separating us. 

As the flames started to proceed towards them the two sheep began to retreat. Once they were far enough I stopped focusing and the flames died away.

I looked down at the Sheep I had caught and put an end to it’s misery.

It was time to feast.


	7. Getting back on track

I dragged the Sheeps body back near the cave, taking shade in one of the larger trees that were present there. 

I needed to cook the meat quickly and get out before the smell of dead sheep might attract something that would be a problem to deal with like one of those chakra beasts.

“Erisu can you check around to see if anything might be approaching me?” I asked as I used steel release to materialize a knife and a slab of steel as I began cleaning it.

On the lack of response I turned around.

Erisu was a few metres away looking at some butterflies on a flower.

“Wind Style:Sudden Breeze” 

A gust of wind rustled the flowers around making the butterflies ascent.

“Why did you scare them away Naito?” she said slightly grumpy.

“I did that because I’m in a serious predicament right now and I need your help. I need you to scan the perimeters for any incoming threats”

“Ok fine..you’re way too bossy for a kid” she said as she floated away.

“Thank you. After we’re safely back in Iwagakure I won’t bother you as much *yawn*” 

It seems my sleep was catching up to me.

Well then I better eat quickly then get out of here.

I gathered a number of leaves and twigs that were around in a pile.

“Fire Style:Burning Jealousy”

In the place of the leaves and twigs there now was a bright fire. I set the meat lodged into the skewers above the fire and waited as it cooked.

After a while of rotating the skewers the meat was finally done. 

Well it was also slightly charred black in certain places due to my lack of cooking experience. Though it definitely tasted great I found out as I took the first bite.

“What is that?” Erisu said as she floated towards me.

“It’s grilled sheep”

“That looks tasty” she said as she stared at it.

“Can you even eat?”

“No I can’t and that makes it even more frustrating” she said as she stared at me eating.

“I can’t *munch* eat if you stare like that. For now just go back and survey the area” 

“Ok”

She returned back to her job as sentry while I finished up my meal.

‘I’m starting to get thirsty now’

I could try creating some drinking water but my affinity to water is pretty bad.

“Erisu” I said as I walked over to the ghost.

“Yeah”

“Any water bodies nearby?”

“I think I did see a stream where I had found those boars”

“Can you check to see whether those boars are still present there?”

“Sure”

She went away and returned in a minute.

“No they seem to have left”

“Ok then let’s head over there”

\---  
I held my hands together as I observed the water. It seemed to be clear enough and it didn’t have a strange smell. Also it was the best I had so there was no other choice at the moment.

So I gathered water in my palms and slurped it up. I didn’t want to use any more jutsu unless it was necessary. 

Since I had some food my chakra would probably replenish in time.

Looking around the stream there were no other animals present, just plants growing at the bank.  
With my task complete I called out to Erisu once more.

“Erisu I need you to check the surrounding areas for any paths between the mountains. I remember my father telling me that most of the mountains present here seem to have natural formations that connect them together”

“Yes I can do that but my range of movement is pretty limited without your presence nearby”

“That’s fine I was planning on searching around too as it seems to be noon”

The sun’s heat was one of the reasons my thirst was so intense.

Leaving the stream aside we began searching for paths that were present between the mountain.

At first they weren’t apparent but small paths came into our vision. 

Erisu went ahead to check the path in case there were some foes on the other side of the mountain.

“It’s fine” 

With her approval I began walking along the narrow paths. My feet were already imbued with chakra so in the case of the path’s collapse I could quickly just latch on to the side of the mountain.

Luckily I managed to get through it without incident.

Following through the second path was easier than the first. The area was wider too making it easier and faster to make it to the other side.

Crossing the second path I waited for Erisu to check up ahead.

“There are a few wolves up ahead but luckily they are asleep”

“So I need to be cautious, got it”

This path like the last was spacious but I had to keep in mind not to make too much of a commotion. 

Erisu guided me through the mountain until it seemed we were far enough.

We had definitely made it closer to Iwagakure but at the same time there were no more connections present between the mountains. 

Though other than that it seemed safe

“What now?” Erisu asked as she turned to me.

“I guess I’ll have to try to connect the two somehow. Earth style:Cavern Drift”

Rocks began shifting until they started extending from the mountain I was at to the other one.

I jumped on top of the extending rocks in the forefront and jumped off on the other mountain as soon as they reached the other side.

Behind me the path which I used to come to the other side collapsed.

“Finally” I said as I saw the mountain where the conflict with the chakra beast and the ninja had taken place below. 

I could also make out blurs moving around the mountain. I wanted to get down there but after that jump my body was simply not obeying me.

“Haah I’m exhausted” I said as I pushed myself to stand up.

The blurs were also moving to the place where they had seen me fall from.

‘So they were searching for me’

If that was the case then all I needed to do was get their attention somehow. I looked around for a while until a plan formed in my mind.

Sending some rocks down their way followed by a Fire Jutsu should do the job.

“Earth Style:Clenched Fists” 

My arms began to coat themselves with the nearby rocks. 

With my larger arms and improved strength thanks to the jutsu I began tossing down rocks from above. I could feel the attention of the ninja being drawn towards myself.

Now all I had to do was show that this was unnatural.

“Haah” 

I took a deep breath.

“Fire Style:Sparking Dissonance”

Sparks flew down from my hands which eventually burst into flames. The rocks I had lobbed down weren’t just big they were also highly reactive to flames.

*BOOM*

With the last jutsu done I collapsed.

“Are you okay?” Erisu asked.

“Yeah just tired”

I wiped the sweat off my head as I waited.

“There he is” A voice called out from my left.

Turning my head a bit I could notice the ninja approaching me.

“Naito let’s head back home” I heard my father say before the world around me turned dark.  
\--

I sat upright as I abruptly woke up.

Looking around the scenery of my bedroom appeared before my eyes.

‘So I was back home’

The other thing I noticed was Erisu present at a corner of the room.

I pushed my body in an effort to get up but eventually lied back down with a slight sound. The door to my room opened as my mother came in.

“Are you feeling better now Naito?” She asked.

“Yes. Is father nearby? I’d like to talk to him”

“He is actually. He decided not to head to work since he found you injured on that mountain” -she turned stern for a moment- “We’ll need to talk about your recklessness too”

“Fine we can talk about that later. I’d like if you could call father so that we can talk”

“Sure” she said as she walked away.

‘It’s strange that she cares about my well being but is going to be sending me into a world of violence. Truly strange’

I turned to stare at the ceiling as I contemplated the events that had taken place-

“Are you going back to sleep?” Erisu asked as she blocked the ceiling.

“No”

“Hmm”

“What?”

“Nothing really. It’s strange that you’re not that skeptic about me.I would have expected you to be in disbelief when you woke up or at least shocked that I was still here. So it’s strange that you seem calm” She said.

“I’ve lived every day questioning whether this world is real or not so an anomaly like your presence doesn’t impact me by a whole lot. I’m not calm I’m just used to it I’d guess”

“What does that mean?”

“Sorry I’d like to cut this conversation short” I said

*Step* *Step*

“I can hear my father approaching”

“Ok fine”

Erisu drifted away and I turned my gaze from the ceiling to the door.

*Step* *Step* *Slide*

“Naito” My father said as he came walking towards me

“Father” I said as I began to sit upright as he supported me.

“How are you now?”

“Luckily other than my entire body essentially hurting I feel more than fine. Maybe thirsty”

I took a cup of water from the side and gulped it down.

“About your little escapade on the mountain-”

“I take full responsibility for that. If you want to expel me from the Academy that’s fine” I said.

“I wasn’t going to say anything like that. Even though you were reckless you did help protect that classmate of yours. I would even claim that the bravery you’ve shown by standing before that beast with a shield proves you’re a better fit for a ninja”

“So you heard about that from Hirai?”

“Yes I did. He also told me about you using steel release though I can’t fault you for letting the ninja find out since this was an emergency”

“I would've assumed that the Iwagakure ninja would have already known I possess a bloodline limit. It’s strange that Hirai and the others didn’t”

“Somehow my father and I managed to keep wraps on things but it isn’t as much of a problem. Though information about this will probably leak out making you a greater threat in the eyes of other nations”

“Kumogakure right?”

He nodded.

“So since you’re now in the eyes of our enemy it should be necessary for me to train you even harder right?” My father said with a smile.

My father hardly ever smiled.

“I’m fine with the training. Anything to make it easier right?”

“Well it seems you understand. Trust me Naito you have the beginnings of a great ninja you just need to see the potential in yourself” His face returning to it’s prior stoicness as he spoke.

“I’ll think about it”

“Okay then I’ll leave you to rest”

With that last word he closed the door and walked away.

‘Seems like I can't procrastinate this like I wanted. I am going to be a ninja one way or another so I’ll have to make some concessions now’

“That was a bit intense,” Erisu said.

“It wasn’t anything serious, just the way us father and son bond”

I was beginning to get curious about Erisu’s background. Essentially how she died and all that stuff but it was awkward trying to speak on it.

“You want to ask me something?” she asked.

“No”

“Then why are you gazing at my face. If you have any questions I would be willing to answer provided they are reasonable”

“Well I don’t really have an urgent question, though I’d more so like to know about your past. I’m pretty sure from listening around the house you might have heard about information about me” I said

I looked straight into her eyes.

“So to even the scales tell me about your death” I said


End file.
